CHICAGO, June 14 /PRNewswire/ -- TVN Entertainment Corporation is
acquiring GRTV Network, a time-buying and direct response network which
was a subsidiary of Guthy-Renker Corporation, and the Panda Shopping
Network (PSN), a live home shopping service, announced TVN Chairman and
Chief Executive Officer Stuart Z. Levin. With these acquisitions, TVN
will create a comprehensive, transaction-oriented multimedia commerce
service. Home shopping veteran Michael Wex has been appointed President
and Chief Operating Officer of the live home shopping service, which
will be a subsidiary of TVN Shopping, Inc. (TSI) and will provide home
shopping opportunities to consumers via the television and the Internet.

Levin stated, "Our cable affiliates want to launch an expanded
array of digital transactional services. By adding e-shopping and
direct response to our existing menu of digital products and services,
we are creating new digital revenue opportunities for the cable and
satellite industries, while adding value for consumers. We anticipate
that commerce services could generate a significant percentage of our
total company revenues within the next few years, as well as provide
lucrative transaction and traditional home shopping commissions for our
affiliates. Additionally, we are extremely pleased to have Michael Wex
participating in this new venture. He has a proven track record in home
shopping and transactional television programming."

With the addition of e-shopping and direct response services, TVN
will continue to capitalize on the increase in consumer acceptance of
transactional television, e-commerce, electronic retailing and other
forms of new economy consumerism. TVN currently delivers near-video-on
demand (NVOD) programming and transactional services, and
video-on-demand (VOD) programming and transactional support. TVN and
Citibank have previously announced an agreement to deliver home banking
and additional financial services for consumers via the next generation
of digital set-tops.

GRTV Network is a 24-hour direct response television service and
leading distributor of high-quality infomercials and products designed
for direct response television sales. GRTV, launched in January 1996 by
Guthy-Renker, currently reaches over 40 million cable and satellite
subscribers and is carried by MSOs such as Time Warner, Comcast and
AT&T Media Services. Initially, GRTV will continue to telecast under
the GRTV brand name and will continue to focus on infomercials and
direct response sales. The current management of GRTV will join TVN and
continue to operate GRTV Network under the TVN Shopping, Inc. umbrella.

Guthy-Renker is the leading marketer of consumer brands via high
quality infomercials, home shopping and direct response television
sales. The company, with annual sales in excess of $350 million, sells
products through a variety of channels, including television, retail,
catalogues and Internet sales. Guthy-Renker markets its products
worldwide and is based in Palm Desert and Santa Monica, California.

Greg Renker, Co-Founder of Guthy-Renker, commented, "TVN is
perfectly positioned to maximize the distribution potential of GRTV. We
look forward to maintaining a long and mutually profitable relationship
with TVN as a valuable distributor of our direct response
programming."

Panda Shopping Network is a live home shopping channel, currently
available to 15 million homes throughout the United States. TVN will
re-brand and relaunch PSN during the third quarter of 1999, and expects
to increase the network's distribution over the next two years to
no fewer than 45 million homes.

Panda Shopping Network's male-oriented product line focuses on
such luxury items as high tech products, jewelry, watches, precious
stones, gems, coins and collectibles. TVN will broaden the product
offering of the shopping network, which will continue to focus on
attracting a male demographic, as well as all adults 18-34, as a
complement to the female-oriented products offered by existing home
shopping services. Revenues from network sales will be shared with
affiliated cable operators.

GRTV Network and the re-branded Panda Shopping Network will be kept
as separate channels, but TVN will achieve economies of scale for both
networks in terms of production. TVN is currently building a new studio
and digital production facility in the Los Angeles area, to be utilized
by both of its new commerce networks.

Michael Wex was most recently President and Chief Executive Officer
of GRTV Network, which he helped launch in 1995. Previously, he was a
co-founder of S: The Shopping Network, an interactive home shopping
channel launched by Fingerhut. Wex has consulted for a variety of cable
networks and entertainment companies, including PolyGram Filmed
Entertainment, Preferred Entertainment and Warner Bros.' WB
Network. He was also Executive Vice President of Shop Television
Network (STN)/JC Penney Television, a nationally distributed home
shopping network. A veteran programmer and distributor, Wex has won
several Cable ACE awards and two Emmy Award nominations. In his new
position with TVN Shopping, Inc., Wex will report to Jim Ramo,
TVN's President.

Wex said, "This opportunity will allow me to combine my
background in transactional television and home shopping with TVN's
cutting-edge digital services and products. Our direct response and
home shopping networks, as well as our website, will be completely
differentiated from existing services. Our networks will allow
affiliates to increase their revenue streams immediately, as well as
position them to take advantage of digital transaction and e-commerce
opportunities presented by the next generation of digital set- top
boxes, such as General Instrument's DCT-5000 and the Explorer
series from Scientific-Atlanta."

TVN will also expand its e-commerce activities by creating a major
Internet presence that will complement and broaden the products offered
via GRTV Network and its re-branded home shopping network. The website
will carry the same consumer brand identity as the new home shopping
network and will offer a diverse, upscale product line.

TVN Entertainment Corporation is a leading supplier of programming
and transactional services for the cable and satellite television
industries. TVN provides near-video-on-demand movie and event
entertainment programming and related transactional services for both
cable and satellite direct-to-home customers, as well as a digital
video-on-demand movie service for the cable industry. TVN's
website can be found at www.tvn.com.

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